BANK SEES THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN GLENDALE FEDERAL RESCINDS FEE FOR CONVERTING COIN ROLLS

J. Robert Ramsay was mad two weeks ago when his bank, Glendale Federal Bank, nickel-and-dimed him over his nickels and dimes.

The Fort Lauderdale retiree fired off a series of letters. Glendale's top executive in Florida received one. The U.S. Treasury Department received one. The Sun-Sentinel received one.

Late this week, Glendale said it will rescind its 18-month-old policy -- a policy federal and state regulators say is unusual -- of charging customers five cents for each roll of coins they convert to dollar bills.

"You have to put a stop to it somewhere along the line," Ramsay said, when told Glendale bent to criticism from customers. "This is petty stuff. I mean this is petty."

Glendale spokeswoman Linda Polen said the bank, with 30 branches in Broward and Palm Beach counties, decided to discontinue its rolled-coins fee during a periodic review a month ago.

Glendale will send a memo about the policy change next week. Bank tellers should discontinue the charge soon after, she said.

"It created so much ill will," Polen said. "Some of the customers were very upset. Anytime you're in a service industry, which we are, you have to be sensitive."

Glendale, which is based in California, apparently is alone among South Florida savings institutions in charging account holders who turn coins into dollars.

A poll of 21 savings institutions in the area found some policies differ on accepting rolled coins. For instance, a few banks accept coins from non- customers as well as account holders.

None of the other 20 institutions surveyed, however, charges a fee for handling coins turned in by account holders.

Experts at the state comptroller's banking hotline and the U.S. Treasury Department in San Francisco said Glendale's fee may be one of a kind.

"This is something new," said Patty Scholz, who fields calls from consumers calling the banking hotline in Tallahassee. "I've never heard of any bank charging its own customers for this."

Laurie Lavaroni, spokeswoman at the Treasury Department's Office of Thrift Supervision, had not heard of a rolled-coins fee either. She checked with the Treasury officials in Washington, who also said the fee appears to be uncommon. "This is the first we've ever heard of it," Lavaroni said.

A Glendale teller in Boca Raton on Thursday described the fee as necessary. She said the Wells Fargo security company increased its rates for handling coins. Glendale is passing that on to customers.

Lee Ciulla of Wells Fargo's Armored Services office in Miami said the company may charge more to handle coins than it used to. But most banks absorb the cost.

"Our charge to Glendale is no higher than it is to any other bank we service -- Barnett, First Union," Ciulla said. "To the banks, it's a public relations kind of thing."

To Ramsay, the Fort Lauderdale resident who complained about the charge, it is more than that. He thought of the message the Glendale fee will send to children who are taught to save money any way they can.

"What does it say?" Ramsay asked. "Here, son, take 50 pennies to the bank and get 45 cents back."

PENNIES SAVED

The Sun-Sentinel asked tellers at 21 savings institutions about accepting rolled coins. Here are the results:

-- WHO CAN TURN IN COINS: All but two of the banks accept coins from only account holders. Chase Federal accepts coins from anyone and TransFlorida accepts coins mainly from account holders but will accept small amounts of coins from people without accounts.

-- INFORMATION REQUIRED: Of the 21 banks polled, 16 require that the rolls be marked with the account number of the person turning in the coins. Two of the banks, BankAtlantic and Chase Federal, require no special markings on the rolls. The remaining three banks, First Union, Midlantic National and TransFlorida, require that the rolls be marked with the person's name and account number.

--CHARGE: Glendale Federal was the only bank of the 21 polled that charged for this service. On Thursday, the bank announced it was rescinding its 5- cents-a-roll charge.